MALIBU, Calif. – Chris Austin and Moses Wood scored 22 points each and freshman Chika Nduka tallied a double-double as Portland led start-to-finish in an 82-63 road win over Pepperdine Saturday night in West Coast Conference basketball action at Firestone Fieldhouse.
Austin scored 14 second half points, including numerous late buckets after Pepperdine pulled within four. Wood battled foul trouble, but was an efficient 6-for-11 from the field and made all six free throw attempts.
Nduka continued his stellar play to open the league season. In his second straight start he earned his second double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds. He was 6-for-8 from the field and added three assists.
The victory marked the first WCC road win for the Pilots (10-7, 1-1 WCC) since a 72-65 victory at Loyola Marymount on Jan. 20, 2018.
Portland led by 13 early in the second half, but five straight points from Mike Mitchell Jr. and a transition three-pointer by Maxwell Lewis made it 53-49. Portland answered with five straight free throws to create a little cushion.
The Pilots missed their first 12 three-point attempts of the second half before Austin buried one to make it 61-49. Wood and then Austin hit two more threes on consecutive possessions, all on assists from Robertson, as Portland's lead grew to 17 points and the outcome was sealed.
Portland shot 42 percent overall and held the Waves (4-13, 0-4) to 39 percent shooting. The Pilots gained a 15-4 edge in points off turnovers, 28-18 margin in the paint and 14-4 advantage in second chance points.
For the second straight game, the team erupted out of the gates and went ahead 8-0 in the opening minutes. Wood buried his first four shots for 11 points as Portland took a double-digit lead, but he picked up his third foul with 10:18 left and had to sit the remainder of the half. Nduka stepped up with nine first half points as the Pilots took a 43-32 lead into halftime.
Jan Zidek paced the Waves with 17 points, while Lewis added 16 off the bench.
Portland will conclude its WCC-opening three-game road trip on Monday against Loyola Marymount. The Pilots and Lions will tip-off at 4 p.m. on the WCC Network and live on 910 ESPN Portland (KMTT).